Three local tutoring companies submitted fraudulent bills to the Garland and San Antonio school districts, according to state investigations.

Diverse Learning, Avenue Academy and Boost Academy sent invoices to both districts so they could get paid for tutoring low-income students, as allowed under the federal No Child Left Behind law. But the tutoring never took place, investigations by the Texas Education Agency found. A lawyer for Diverse Learning said the company is contesting TEA's decision. Messages left Academy and Boost have not been returned.

TEA had already removed Avenue Academy and Boost Academy (which have the same Hurst address) from the state's approved list of tutoring companies for other violations. A related company called Diverse Learning (also known as Diverse Links) was removed April 4. In addition, a Coppell firm called 1 to 1 Computer Tutoring was removed April 2.

But those tutoring firms are free to reapply to get back on the state list this fall. And some school district leaders say that's not cool.

"What we want is the ability to permanently remove companies from the list that have a history of fraud," said Leslie Price, a spokeswoman for San Antonio ISD. She said SAISD spends a lot of time and money documenting problems with tutoring companies, only to have them potentially remain in business.

"There is a serious problem here," Price said. "Students are not getting the services they need, and monies are not being used in the best way."

As a state agency, TEA cannot prohibit companies from re-applying, spokeswoman DeEtta Culbertson said. But the agency will consider a company's past sanctions or investigations when reviewing future applications.

San Antonio ISD filed a complaint in February alleging that Avenue, Boost, Diverse Learning and three other tutoring firms had sought a total of $280,000 for tutoring that never actually happened. The district's own investigation found cases where students were asked to sign blank forms to receive tutoring, along with a free "learning tool" like a tablet or laptop computer. District officials said students told them they received little or no tutoring, and not on the dates or times the companies claimed.

Garland ISD lodged similar complaints against Avenue, Boost and Diverse Learning in February. GISD officials said students were told to sign their names several times, often with different dates and times, only to not be tutored. They haven't given an estimate of how much fraudulent billing occurred. Based on the hourly tutoring rates (Diverse charges $80, Avenue and Boost charge $70), the companies sought as much as $1,800 per student.

Diverse Learning was one of the state's top tutoring providers in 2011-12, receiving more than $2.1 million for working with almost 2,200 students statewide. Dallas ISD has also accused the company of submitting phony invoices. Last year, Diverse Learning sued DISD, saying the district refused to pay $1.4 million for legitimate tutoring services.

Under No Child Left Behind, poor students in struggling schools are eligible to receive free tutoring in math and reading. Parents choose a company from the state list, and the company bills the school district. Complaints have mounted against the tutoring program, also called supplemental educational services, and TEA's commissioner has sought to make participation voluntary.

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